[dave allen]

Is it a good idea to have leisure battery wired to the vehicle charging system,ive heard this could mess up charging vehicle battery.How much can i expect to pay for a leisure battery?might be good idea to have 2- so one always on charge!Dave A

[jeff1]

Is it a good idea to have leisure battery wired to the vehicle charging system,ive heard this could mess up charging vehicle battery.How much can i expect to pay for a leisure battery?might be good idea to have 2- so one always on charge!Dave A

If you must wire into your vehicle then use a split charge relay, DO NOT wire directly to the vehicles own electrics unless your alternator has the capacity for charging 2 batteries.

A leisure battery is your best choice, they are  designed for deep discharges unlike a car battery, I bench charge mine every night, this helps keep the battery in tip top condition.

[Sir Squeaky]

A leisure battery is your best choice, they are  designed for deep discharges unlike a car battery...

Don't get caught out though and damage it.
It's only slightly better.

A normal battery shouldn't go below 30% charge.
A leisure battery no lower than 20%.

[prestigeclean]

leisure batteries are not designed to be charged every night , if you do it will shorten the life of it , your beter off getting 2 batteries and when 1 runs out change them over and then charge it regards alan

[jeff1]

leisure batteries are not designed to be charged every night , if you do it will shorten the life of it , your beter off getting 2 batteries and when 1 runs out change them over and then charge it regards alan

Alan I'm affraid you are so wrong on this one, a leisure battery is kept in good condition with constant charging and topped up.

I've been charging the same battery for years and its still used every day except sundays, its then left on charge all day and night, and if I go away on holiday its left on charge until I next use it. if you use the wrong charger on car or leisure batteries then yes you can damage any battery by constant charging.

[steven ainger]

i bench charge my deep cycle leisure battery every night, after i use it.
18 months on and its still working perfectly.
i use a c-tek intelligent charger.

[jeff1]

A few facts about the difference between leisure and car batteries.

Both types of batteries are similar in construction. They normally have six cells containing sulphuric acid topped with distilled water and are housed in a polypropylene casing.Each cell has a set of lead plates. During recharging and discharging each plate expands and contracts. In doing so the plates lose some of their active material.

A separator between the plates helps to stop this. In a car battery the separator is not sufficient to prevent deterioration if constant deep cycling takes place.
A leisure battery has a second glass wool separator which helps contain the active materials and prolongs battery life.
Sulphuric acid fills the voids in the cells and is used as a conductor between the plates.
As the cell discharges the density of the acid decreases, reducing the ability of the plates to release the electric current. Charging reverses the process.

[AJ]

Leisure battery about £50 ish. I get ours from a local camping and caravan site. they've always got them in stock.
I just keep 1 battery and charge it every night, no probs. if it does run down I keep a cable with a cigarette lighter plug in the van. ideally you have to keep the van running while its being used, but it gets you out of spot.

[dai]

Ideally, a leisure battery should be charged when it is half discharged. A battery in good condition will still have half of it's charge when it gives a reading of 12.05 volts, this is the ideal time to charge it.
I just put mine on charge every other night, it's 85 amp hour and I use a digital Varistream on number 1 or number 2 setting. The battery will use a lot more juice if you are using a bypass.

[windowwashers]

I now have a marine battery lasts a lot longer, 4 full days I had last week

[L.J.Thorpe]

leisure batteries are not designed to be charged every night , if you do it will shorten the life of it , your beter off getting 2 batteries and when 1 runs out change them over and then charge it regards alan

absolute opposite to what you should do :
deep cycle battery should be charged after evry use for a min of 8 hrs even if only used for half an hour
use a trickle charger preferably one that has less than 5 amp output
3amp is even better
that is the way to prolong a deep cycle batteries life

[prestigeclean]

i stand by what i,ve already said i used to work with a guy that imported them and thats what the manufacturer recommended regards alan

[L.J.Thorpe]

and i stand by what i say
i source my batteries fom a local mobility centre
they have been selling servicing and repairing electric mobility scooters since the things existed(before that they did the old light blue invalid carriages)
most scooters have two batteries
if one fails under warranty they replace both,even if the other one is perfect
i then buy these for £10
the first pair only lasted about six months
i would run one till the varistream started blinking,then swap to the fully charged one and recharge the flat one.When i went back for fresh ones they advised me on the best way totreat the battery to prolong its life.One year on and this time no problems,charged every night for over 12 hours usually,regardless of how much use it has had

[prestigeclean]

i worked in the mobility industry for 7 years , and have sold hundreds of scooters , if you charge a leisure battery every night you will over time reduce its capacity regards alan

[stevieg]

and so we have it the diffinitive answer.!!!!!!

[karygate]

i,m even more confused now

[Sir Squeaky]

i,m even more confused now

What?

[Sir Squeaky]

Where am I?

[L.J.Thorpe]

same info from two suppliers
battery should never be fully discharged
battery should be recharged asap after every use
running a battery until pump slows/stops and then charging it is the best way to knacker it
they also recommend a certain kind of charger
a 3 stage iuou charger apparently
energy batteries 0844 800 0021
hill billy (the golf trolley people) 01795 413830

[prestigeclean]

my information comes from electric mobility , karelma , shoprider , mobility markets , freerider , roma , etc these are all manufacturers or importers of mobility scooters or electric wheelchairs , and talking to there engineers direct , you are correct in saying they should not be fully discharged however you will do more harm by continually topping up the battery regards alan